Shoe with movable thonged upper



May 9,, 1950 M.'SHAPIRO SHOE WITH MOVABLE THONGED UPPER I 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 19, 1946 INVENTOR. MART/IV SHAP/RO May 9, 1950 M. SHAPIRO 2,507,120

SHOE WITH MOVABLE THONGED UPPER Filed June 19, 1946 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 4 Tram/5y Patented May 9, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT "O FFICE SHOE WITH MOVABLE THONGED UFPER Martin Shapiro, New York, N. Application June 19, 1946, serial No. was

3 'Glaims. 1

This invention relates generally to shoes. More particularly invention is directed to a highly improved and novel shoe construction of the type in which the upper and other shoe portions are rem'ovab'ly attached to the sole portion.

One of the obie'cts of my invention is to provide a novel shoe eonstmcnon of the class described in which the said shoe may the qi'iiokly converted into a house shoe, or a shoe for street wear, or a sandal and which shall be so designed that discomfort generally experienced by the wearer in eerta in areas because of ressure icy the shoe may he readily relieved.

Another object of my invention is to provide, in a novel shoe construction of the bias de scribed, a thong sandal arrangement which shall be so constructed and arranged that the thong will automatically adjust itself to variations in anatomical structures of the toes of d'ifierent persons.

A further object of my invention is to provide, in a shoe construetion of the class "described, an improved design for a removable thong memher, whereby the said thong will adjust itself to and follow the contour of the foot.

Still another object of my invention is to pro vide in a shoe construction of the class desor'ibed, an improved design for a removable toe (zap which will permit the same to adjustably stretch over and fit the joints of the foot.

Other objects of my invention will become apparent from the descri tion of the invention to follow or will hereinafter be s ecifically pointed out.

In the accompanying drawing. v v I Fig. 1 is a perspective view. of the basic unit of a shoe construction designed in aceordanee with my invention; 4

Fig. 1A is a cross-sectional View takensutstantia'lly along the line IA'IA of Fig. '1;'

Fig. 2 is a view similar to Fig. 1, but with ah instep part removably attaohed to saitl basic unit;

Fig. 2A is a topplan View of the component parts of the instep member disassembled from the shoe shown in Fig. 2;

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2, but with a toe cap additionally removatly attaohed thereto and adapted for use in stormy weather;

Fig. 4' is a view similar to Fig. 3; but with the toe Ca-p removed therefrom and replaced by a thong, thereby converting the shoe into a sandal for fair weather use? Fig. 5 is a. perspetive View of the toe cat shown in Fig. 3, but removed therefrom;

Fig. 6 is a erossae ctronal view taken substantially along the iine -6 B of Fig. 5';

Fig. 7 is a eer's eetive view or the thong member alone, shown Fig. 4 and removed therefrom;

Fig. '81s emerges cross-sectional View taken substantially men; the line -a--s of Fig. '1

Fig. '9 is an enlarged view of a portion of the Shoe eenstruenen shown Figs. 1 and 4, with a wail portion thereof broken away to disclose the interior eons'traetibn;

Figs. 9A and 9B are fragmentary vie't'vs similar to Fig. "9, out illustrating modified forms of my invention.

Referring now in detail to the rawings and more pa tamer-1y to Figs. 1 and 1A, I have shown the basic unit it of jm y shoe eoiistiuotion comprising a 'sble member which may he or any standard type, such as, for example, a platform sole H ;iha-de with an air roam filler or of any other desire'd khown material. ovenying the latform sole is an inner sole it of any suitable material havihg edges teiinihatihg at the edge of the sole mister H. .A layer of relatively thin, soft leather Ha. may iinde'rlie the member H, the edges thereof being turned upwardly to overlie the edge of the said II and inturned to secure the same in permanent posi-'- tion as clearly shown in Fig. 1A of the drawings. A perinanenny attaiz'hed heel portion I4 may be provided iiiidernea'th the sole H anda counter member '15 may be permanently attached to the sole H above the said heel M in the customary manner, wen khowiito the art. A iiliirality of male fastener elements 16 of any suitable type are i-l'xedly attaehed to the sole ll ill spaced relationship aroiind the edge I Id of the said sole I'n aeeorq nee with my invention I provide an instep member 20. A's noted in Figs. 2 and 2A, the ihstefi fneifibr 20 eomarises a pair of strips 20:? and 20} of leather or other suita'ble material having a row of female fastener eline'iit's 2!, parallel to and disposed adjacent each transverse edge 20a thereof. The said fastener elements 254 are spaced so as to correspond to the spam mg of the el ments 16 en the sole for coo-pelatioii therewith so that the strips 208 and 201 may be attached in effective position to form a strap,- as show Figs. 2 and 2A. A buckle 26 fixed to the strii) Zoe and a Cooperating eyelet rhmhr 21 on the stiifi 20] serves to adjustaloly interconnect the 'said' strips to provide a snu fit aroiiiid the instep A series of male fastener elements 22 are fixedly mounted adjacent opposite ends a of the strip 20 and along the rear longitudinal edge 20b thereof. Each side of the counter I5 is provided with a buckle member I8 of standard construction, whereby straps 23 may be used to interconnect the counter I5 with the instep member 20. One end, 23a of the strap 23 is provided with eyelet openings to receive the tongue of the buckle I8 in the usual manner, while the opposite end 231) is provided with a female fastener element 24 designed to selectively cooperate with a fastener element 22.

The shoe construction shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings and as above described may be adapted for use as a beach sandal or for indoor wear.

In accordance with my invention and as shown in Figs. 3, 5, nd 6 I have provided a removable toe cap member 30 (see Figs. 5 and 6) which is adapted to be attached to the assembled shoe construction shown in Fig. 2 to convert the same into a shoe suitable for outdoor wear, particularly for cold and stormy weather.

The said toe cap member 30 may be made of the usual type of material generally employed in the art for toe caps for shoes and concaved and shaped accordingly as shown. Adjacent the bottom edge 30a thereof I provide a row of female fastener elements 3| spaced from each other to correspond to the fastener elements IS on the sole I0 and designed to cooperate therewith. Adjacent the rear transverse edge 30b of the member 30 I provide a row of female fastener elements 32 spaced from each other the same distance as, and designed to cooperate with, the row of male fastener elements on the forward transverse edge 200 of the instep member 20.

It is thus seen from the above described construction that when it is desired to attach the toe cap to the platform sole IE3, it is merely necessary to cooperatively fasten together the elements I6 and 3|, and the elements 25 and 32. The said toe cap may be readily removed by merely detaching the said cooperating fastener elements.

To permit the toe cap to stretch over the joints of the foot for greater comfort to the wearer, I provide a plurality of longitudinal pleats 33 in the material of the said toe cap, as clearly shown in Fi 6.

In order to adapt my shoe, as above described, for use as a thong-type sandal for use in fair weather, I provide the following construction:

In Figs. '7 and 8 I have shown a thong unit 40, which may be made of any suitable material and which is constructed and arranged in accordance with my invention. The said thong comprises a generally T-shaped sheet of material 40a and a longitudinal part 40b. As noted in the drawings, the parts 40a and 40b overlap for a predetermined mount and an elastic strip 44 is provided for interconnecting the said parts 40a. and 40b. The strip 44 may be attached by adhesive or stitching or by any other well known method. Adjacent the transverse rear edge 40c of the part 40a, I provide a row of female fastener elements 4|, spaced apart the same distance as the elements 32 on the toe cap 30. Also, at the forward end of the part 40b I place a female fastener element 42. To attach the thong 40 to the shoe unit shown in Fig. 2, I fasten the row of elements M to the cooperating elements 25 on the instep member 20 and. the female element 42 is snapped on to a selected cooperating element I6 on the sole I I. The elastic interconnection between the parts 40a and 40b prevent buckling or binding of the thong member.

Many persons are unable to wear thong-type sandals due to the fact that the spacing between the big toe and the adjacent toe of the foot does not correspond with the position of the fixed thong of the sandal, with the result that the thong cuts into the flesh and renders the wearer extremely uncomfortable. I have therefore provided the following construction to obviate the above mentioned disadvantage whereby the thong may automatically adjust itself in each individual instance to occupy a comfortable position.

In the sole I I, between the top and bottom surfaces thereof, I provide a slotted opening 50 which extends inwardly from the front portion of the edge I la of the sole and which may be made in the shape of a triangle, as shown. Pivotally mounted within the said opening 50, by means of the pivot 5|, is a relatively rigid bar 52, which is adapted to freely move in a lateral direction within the said opening, and having a portion 50a thereof projecting slightly outside of said opening. Mounted at the end of the portion 50a of the bar 52 is a female fastener element 55 similar to the fasteners I6. The cooperating fastener element 42 on the thong 40 is adapted to snap on to the movably mounted element 55.

It is thus seen from the above described construction that when the thong 40 is attached to the shoe to convert the same into a sandal as above described the forward end of the thong will automatically find its most comfortable position between the big toe and the next adjacent toe of the wearer's foot.

In Figs. 9A and 93 I have shown modified forms of the Fig. 9 form of my invention.

In Fig. 9A I have shown a channel member made of metallic or other suitable material and having a pair of bent over longitudinal edges 90a to form a trackway for a plate 9| to freely laterally slide therein. A male fastener element 92 is fixed to the plate 9| for movement therewith. The member 90 may be adhesively fixed to the edge of the sole I I or it may be nailed in the well known manner.

In the Fig. 9B form of my invention I embed the track member IOI, similar in design and function to that of the track member 90, into the material of the sole, such as, for example, the hereinbefore mentioned foam filler. Similarly to the track member 90, the track member IGI is provided with bent over longitudinal edges I02 and a slidable plate I 03 to which there is fixed a male fastener element I04, for movement therewith. To permit the free sliding movement of the fastener element I04, I provide a slotted opening I05 extending from the top surface of the sole II to the track member IOI. In this form of my invention the fastener element I04 is so designed as to project beyond the top surface of the said sole.

In both forms of my invention according to Figs. 9A and 9B the cooperating fastener element 42 on the thong part 40b is designed to be snapped into engagement with the elements 92 or I04.

In accordance with my invention as hereinbefore described. it is noted that when the shoe is worn in either of the forms illustrated in Figs. 2, 3 and 4 of the drawings, uncomfortable pressures of the shoe on the foot may be relieved by lllllOCklng or separating any selected pair or pairs of cooperating fastener elements.

It is also noted that any suitable form of well known fastener devices may be employed to carry out my invention, and if desired certain striking ornamental efiects may be produced by using the nail-head type of fastener elements.

In accordance with the provisions of the patent Statutes, I have herein described the principle and operation of my invention, together with the construction which I now consider to represent the best embodiment thereof, but I desire to have it understood that the construction shown is only illustrative and that the invention can be carried out by other means. Also, while it is designed to use the various features and elements in the combinations and relations described, some of these may be altered and others omitted without interfering with the more general results outlined, and the invention extends to such use.

Having described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a shoe of the character described having a shoe bottom comprising a sole portion, a thong member having a forward end and a rearward end, means for detachably attaching said forward end of said thong to said sole portion, said last named means comprising a first fastener element carried by said sole portion, a cooperating second fastener element carried by said thong, and means for movably mounting said first fastener element on said sole portion.

2. A shoe according to claim 1 in which the said thong comprises two parts overlapping intermediate said forward and rearward ends thereof and slidable relative to each other, and an elastic member interconnecting said two overlapping parts of said thong member.

3. A shoe according to claim 1 in which the means for movably mounting said first fastener element on said sole portion comprises a slotted opening between the top and bottom surfaces 01' said sole portion extending inwardly from the marginal edge thereof, a relatively rigid bar member pivotally mounted at its inner end for oscildating movement within said slotted opening and having its opposite free end projecting outside of said slotted opening, the said first fastener element being carried by said outside projecting portion of said bar member.

MARTIN SHAPIRO.

7 REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the "file of this patent: j,

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 213,490 Apfel Mar. 25, 1879 311,018 Lord Jan. 20, 1885 730,366 Gunthrop June 9, 1903 1,554,883 Sahlin Sept. 22, 1925 1,877,724 Gustin Sept, 13, 1932 2,221,132 Girardi Nov. 12, 1940 2,236,367 Gruber Mar. 25, 1941 2,263,339 Koch Nov. 18, 1941 2,377,119 Amenta May 29, 1945 2,428,262 Bunker Sept. 30, 1947 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 241,910 Great Britain Nov. 19, 1925 467,247 Great Britain July 15, 1937 498,635 Germany Oct. 23, 1930 

